Baseball Reference Glossary

Magic Number

 What is a Magic Number?

Magic Number refers to the number of games that a team in a division or wild card race needs to go their way in order to clinch the winning position.

The Magic Number is the number of games that would need to go a team’s way, including both wins by the team and losses by their nearest rival, in order for them to clinch the spot. Once the Magic Number is 0, the team has clinched.

How is a Magic Number used?

In the back half of the regular season, teams are competing for playoff spots, either by winning their division or clinching a wild card slot. The Magic Number allows teams to visualize how close they are to clinching.

The Magic Number typically becomes a discussion topic in early September, when the Postseason is close and the Magic Number is small enough to be achievable.

How to calculate Magic Number?

The Magic Number is calculated by adding the total number of games remaining in the season, adding one, and then subtracting from this the number of the leading team’s wins and the pursuant team’s losses

As a formula, that looks like:

MN = (G + 1) – (WA + LB)

  • G : number of games during the season
  • WA : number of wins by the leading team
  • LB : number of losses by the pursuing team

Magic Number Calculator

Magic Number Examples

Let’s say the Mariners and Rangers are in a race for the AL West. The Mariners are 80-70 and the Rangers are 78-72. That means both teams have 12 games remaining and the Mariners have a two-game lead.

Seattle’s magic number would be (162+1) – (80+72) or 11.

Filed under Statistics